A press release from Grizzly Adams Productions, a film and television company partly based in Baker City, Oregon, informs us of the passing of Charles E. "Chuck" Sellier, the prolific writer, producer, director and marketing whiz behind the novel, film and TV series "The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams" and literally dozens of other big and little screen productions.

Seiller (pronounced sell-ee--AY) lived and wrote in Baker City for a number of years in the 1990s and 2000s, leaving Oregon for the Coeur d'Alene area six years ago. He died there Monday at age 67.

For more than 30 years, Sellier was a heroically productive writer and producer, creating literally scores of films and TV series that have grossed hundreds of millions of dollars globally. The most famous of these was surely the "Grizzly Adams" franchise, which Sellier first realized as a 1972 novel, then as a 1974 smash hit independent film, and finally as a TV series which ran for only two seasons on NBC but left a lasting impression in the popular culture.

But Sellier also had major theatrical hits with the 1976 documentary "In Search of Noah's Ark" and the 1977 documentary "The Lincoln Conspiracy," as well as with various film and TV projects that had Christian and historical themes, including "Ancient Secrets of the Bible," "Mark Twain's America." He was a pioneer in the use of computer technology to conceive, market and distribute films, and he was often cited as among the most financially successful independent film producers of his time. "Noah's Ark," for instance, was made for less than $500,000 and has grossed a several hundred times that much over the decades.

from "Silent Night, Deadly Night" (1984)

The vast majority of Sellier's films were faith-focused, but he will also be remembered by lovers of slasher films as the director of "Silent Night, Deadly Night," the 1984 cult classic film about an axe murderer dressed in a Santa outfit. The film's long success wasn't a source of pride. According to Sellier's longtime friend and business associate Darryl Howard, "He used to say 'Everybody's done one that they wish they hadn't done, and that's mine.'" Sellier's official biography -- and most obituaries -- omitted the film from his list of credits.

Sellier was born in Pascagoula, Mississippi in 1943 and was an addicted film lover from a young age. He worked in film laboratories as a young man while studying computers via a correspondence course. When he got involved in filmmaking, his knowledge of computuing led him to seek ways to make movie marketing a more scientific discipline than it had been. He became acquainted with the likes of Frank Capra, Orson Welles and Burt Reynolds, all of whom were interested in his use of computer models to predict how films built on certain themes would fare at the boxoffice.

Dan Haggerty (r.) as Grizzly Adams, with co-star Denver Pyle.

It was, in fact, market research and not religion that brought Sellier to the subject of "Noah's Ark," which was suggested to him by polling by the Gallup Organization. Sellier was, it happened, a religious man who, according to Howard, who was born Catholic, became Mormon and then embraced Evangelical Christianity. He was known to study the Bible and pray each morning, even on the many work days in the film business when first call was as early as 4:30 am.

In addition to his extensive film and television work, Sellier wrote or co-wrote more than a dozen books and left a film library -- much of which still circulates profitably -- of more than 600 titles. He is survived by his wife, Julie Magnuson, and their son, William.